Just a few years ago, a hotel could call itself
"wired" if it offered a dedicated phone line for an
Internet or fax connection. Today, being wired means something
entirely different.

The newest properties are opening with rooms featuring
dedicated, high-speed Internet connections at T-1 speeds-that's
about 100 times faster than the fastest phone modem-or higher. And
existing hotels are retrofitting their rooms to accommodate a
surging demand for fast Net access.

Fueling the need for fast connections is the increase in
Internet usage by business travelers, as well as growth in the file
sizes that need to be transmitted. In its most recent membership
survey, conducted in 1998, 43 percent of the American Hotel &
Motel Association's constituents said they offered their guests
Internet access.

Many major-market hotels already offer the quicker connections,
according to Bobby Bowers, a lodging expert at Smith Travel
Research in Hendersonville, Tennessee. "In a few years,
they'll be everywhere," he predicts.

Meantime, which are the most wired hotels?

Marriott recently began installing high-speed Internet access
in many of its guestrooms, meeting rooms and business centers. Its
network is up to 50 times faster than conventional data ports and
lets guests access the Internet and use the telephone at the same
time. Thanks to a new plug-and-play system, visitors can connect to
the network using an Ethernet LAN or a USB cable. Cost: A day of
Internet access will set you back $9.95.

Hilton, which innovated high-speed communications in 1996 with
its Telesuite video-conferencing network, has started installing a
new high-speed system called OverVoice, which allows guests to surf
the Internet at several hundred times conventional speeds. Costs
vary, with fees that are adjusted "based on overall use of the
service" but not expected to exceed $10 per day.

Another connectivity option that properties such as Choice
Hotels International are selecting is the in-room PC/Internet
connection offered by the likes of GuesTech LLC in Baltimore.
GuesTech's SuiteLink system is being installed in 50,000 hotel
rooms nationwide, and it offers connection speeds roughly 100 times
faster than a normal line from a 450MHz PC in the room. Access is
free.

Individual hotels, such as the Holiday Inn Wall Street
(believed to be the first-ever Manhattan hotel to offer T-1
access), aren't waiting for their parent companies to take the
lead. The property has offered guests a free day of Internet
access, valued at $14.95, with a special coupon from its Web
site.

But Mark Haley, director of customer relationship management for
hsupply.com, a business-to-business hotel technology services
company in Atlanta, says that while it may seem that every hotel is
getting hooked up to a high-speed connection, there remains a lot
of work to be done. "That's because the 'take'
rates-or the rate at which guests use these services-is in the
single digits," he says. "Usage only goes up when people
don't pay for it."

In other words, don't expect to see a T-1 line in your hotel
room any time soon-unless you're willing to pay a premium for
it.

Christopher Elliott is a writer in Annapolis, Maryland.
Contact him at www.elliott.org.